Dedicated students, distinguished colleagues and dear friends,

Happy Friday!

I know it is no great achievement, and I realize that millions of people are at it at this very moment, but I am quietly pleased that I know how to read! I think I know how to read! No, I don’t mean being able to recognize the string of written words, although the ability to read must not be taken for granted given that 20% of adults in America are illiterate! Rather, I mean the kind of reading that takes the reader into the realm of the writer and into an act of imagination. For me, good writing pauses time and creates a state of suspension from the ordinary sequencing of minutes and hours. Often, when reading works by masters of literary art, my awareness of the real world is almost entirely redirected to that of the writer and to “the voice.”

All writings are not equal, of course, and not all writers are able to capture your attention. From classics to contemporary, regardless of language, culture, subject or epochs, good writing, at least for the duration, creates a feeling of being encapsulated into another world, hopefully a more profound world, depending on the topic, the era, and the ability of the writer to articulate the voice in words.

So how do you find the “magic” script to get lost in and delve into what the pages hold? Recommended reading lists offer the wonderful classics from Austen, Kerouac, Steinbeck, Hemingway, to Sufi masters Rumi, Hafez and Saadi of my other world, to the usual bored commuter list of Clancy, King, Grisham and the rest. In the haste of reading “the best on the list,” however, a rich trove of “local” writers and writings are often overlooked. Here at S&T, we have some of the most prolific authors whose work can delight and temporarily allow the illusion of leaving behind the concrete matters of here and now. Some happy, some sad, but always an entry into the realm of an idealized world different from our own.

Adding to the list that I highlighted earlier, this sampling of the recent books published by our faculty and staff is enough to keep even the most voracious reader busy for the summer and beyond. From history of wars (John McManus and Petra DeWitt) to history of breakfast cereal (K.C. Dolan) to the history of S&T, strategies of business success and mobs of early Las Vegas (Larry Gragg) to women Egyptologists (Kate Sheppard), not to mention an entire book on the origins of the term “dude” (Jerry Cohen), you will find the treasures and pleasures of summer reading in the listed samplings.

To our students, I say, read! With the start of the summer yesterday, I suggest planning to read a minimum of five books of your choosing to discover what the pages hold. Within your forte, choose well, read and experience the exalted potential of the script as you enjoy all your other summer activities.

To be clear (and trying to avoid any misunderstanding of my past messages), I am not advocating any reading as a substitute for any other, particularly religious reading with its implicit assurance of the afterlife and life’s purpose. I am simply and purely encouraging works of literary art that offer no such assurance but the assurance that the work itself will stand the test of time to live on by impacting, positively, future generations.

Finally, during this week of Juneteenth, I encourage all of us to read about the historic June 19, 1865, and learn what the history holds.

Warmly,

-Mo.

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Mohammad Dehghani, PhD
Chancellor
mo@mst.edu | 573-341-4116

206 Parker Hall, 300 West 13th Street, Rolla, MO 65409-0910
chancellor.mst.edu